


all the ashes in my wake

by chillydown



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Fire, M/M, brief mention of being burnt alive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-09
Updated: 2019-08-09
Packaged: 2020-08-13 19:04:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20179207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chillydown/pseuds/chillydown
Summary: Caleb has grown more comfortable with the flames. Fjord has noticed.





	all the ashes in my wake

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Wiccy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wiccy/gifts).

> Set vaguely in between episodes 69 and 72, though there are only outright spoilers up to episode 69. Inspired by the song "Arsonist's Lullaby" by Hozier.

Once he actually stopped to think about it, Caleb realized that he had been growing more comfortable with the flames. He used to go still at the smell of burning hair but now, things were changing. Wall of fire was slowly becoming one of his trump cards. It was perfect for breaking up a fight or keeping his friends safe. And if someone else managed to get burned or killed by the flames, then so be it.

It was...good? The flames kept people safe. They kept the party safe as Avantika threatened to kill them all. They kept Fjord safe, as the wall of fire split between him and the Laughing Hand. But at the same time, there was still the smell of charred flesh, the screams he heard when someone was burned, and Caleb couldn’t help but wonder if this really was a good thing.

There were moments after he cast that spell, as he caught the aroma of sizzling flesh, when a small, dark part of his mind wondered if Trent Ikithon would be proud of him. Caleb worried the answer would be yes.

“You know,” Fjord said one evening, as the two stayed up for the first shift of the night watch. “When you use your fire magic? You haven’t been freezing up lately. You used to go near catatonic when you burned a guy but now? You're tossing off those spells like it ain't a problem.”

There was a casualness to those words that Caleb didn’t know how to interpret. Or perhaps it was just the accent: that drawl of his made everything seem a little casual, even when Fjord was obviously tense or angry. Caleb matched that forced casualness with some of his own. “Perhaps I have been getting more comfortable with the flames.”

“Perhaps. Or perhaps you’ve gotten more comfortable at hiding how uncomfortable you are.”

Ah. It really was amazing how Fjord could occasionally see past those walls he put up and pinpoint a feeling burning in Caleb’s heart. He paused for a moment before adjusting slightly, moving so that he could lean his head on the half-orc’s shoulder. It was a calculated move: Fjord tended to blush at the slightest sign of physical affection. This should rattle him enough that he would drop the subject. And, true to form, a small red flush started to creep up the half-orc’s cheeks.

“We shall just have to see.”


End file.
